Law vs Grace

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Every now and then, I hear sermons where there is this great big divide between law and grace. The "grace people" are sometimes viewed as "wishy-washy". As if to say, if you rely too much on grace, you are also saying that you have a license to sin. "Grace people" are also viewed as people who throw the forgiveness card around, because they believe their sins are forgiven, so they think that they can do what they want and get away with it. So, in all such kind of sermons, one is reminded to follow the requirements of the law,  and from  God. You must obey, be moral and be good Christians. 

I'm baffled by this kind of thinking. If someone truly has an understanding of grace, they also understand the magnitude of sin, specifically their OWN sin, not someone else's sin. If one does not understand their own sin, one also does not understand grace. They understand some version of God's love and forgiveness but not the extent to why someone would need grace.  

When the prophet Isaiah witnessed the glory of God, he was overwhelmed by the magnitude of his OWN sin.

“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” - Isaiah 6:5

Paul referred to himself as the chief of sinners. This was not because he was trying to portray a very humble image. He was saying it because he truly believed that he was THAT bad. Paul spoke about God's grace more than anyone else in the New Testament. 

In my early days of being a Christian, I would often hear talk about all the big sins. I would think that since I didn't commit any of the big sins, I was doing well. I would also be inclined to judge and think badly of people who committed the big sins. 

But the more I thought that way, the more I started getting convicted of my own sins. It was like God pointed a magnifying glass at me and then also gave me a 360 degree tour, where my specific sin was highlighted from all different angles. I started seeing the hardness it caused around my heart and also the way it affected how I treated others.

In one of the recent sermons, I heard the preacher talk about self control and then he proceeded to say that anyone who does not have self control does not have the Holy Spirit in him. One would only have to assume that this preacher did not struggle with this sin of self control. Hence, he felt free to judge this one "sin". Why didn't the preacher talk about self righteousness or lack of love or impatience or gossiping, which are also sins? Should the Holy Spirit be with the person who commits these sins and more?

Jesus makes it very clear all through the New Testament including the sermon on the mount, that God has very high standards and expectations. While we look at the outward appearance and actions, Jesus is more concerned with the issues of the heart.

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, also on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness". - Matthew 23:27-28 

Many a times, preachers ask to keep the law, when they themselves have no clue on how to obey that law. 

"Woe to you as well, experts in the law!" He replied. "You weigh men down with heavy burdens, but you yourselves will not lift a finger to lighten their load" - Luke 11:46

Grace does not cause a person to disobey or be flippant. On the contrary, it fills our heart with indebtedness. How could I hurt the God who loves me so much that He accepts me as I am? How could my heart even fathom the extent of that love? 
Grace does not push a person away from God's commands.  At the same time, grace also recognizes the feebleness in our attempts to obey. It also recognizes that we do not do what we are supposed to do. That recognition makes dependence on God increase as we learn to lean on Him in our day to day lives.
It realizes Jesus as the perfect fulfillment of those very commands. Even an iota of obedience that I might claim to have, comes from God's grace. 

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